IHRA wraps up 2014 season with crowning of champions at IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals

The International Hot Rod Association wrapped up its 2014 season Sunday with the crowning of champions in 15 IHRA classes during a busy weekend at the IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals at Memphis International Raceway.

Records were broken and trophies were handed out in 15 IHRA classes on a beautiful Sunday afternoon just outside of Memphis, Tenn. After a washout on Saturday, IHRA finally got on track on championship Sunday and put on quite a show for the thousands of fans watching around the world on the IHRA live feed. When all was said and done, Peter Gallen (Nitro Funny Car), Brad Waddle (Pro Stock) and Jay Turner (Nitro Harley) claimed wins in IHRA’s Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series and a total of 15 world champions were formally crowned across three IHRA series.

“Man, this is just a dream come true. You try year-after-year to win one of these things and to finally get it done, to win a championship with the IHRA, it is really unbelievable. I don’t have the words to describe how exciting this is,” said Jeremy Mason, 2014 IHRA Quick Rod World Champion.

And that sentiment was echoed throughout the pits among both sportsman and Nitro Jam drivers.

Three-time IHRA champion Peter Gallen was one of those drivers, winning his first IHRA race of the season in Memphis while besting new IHRA record holder Mark Sanders in the process. With Sanders setting a new AMSOIL Nitro Funny Car mile-per-hour record one run earlier at 254.38 mph, Gallen was undeterred and put together a stout 5.801-second pass at 249.07 mph in the Nitro Funny Car final to take home his first Ironman of the season.

2014 IHRA Top Sportsman World Champion Mike Koontz

“Obviously this was a very good group out here racing this weekend, but we got it done with some luck. Our car was not performing properly at all this weekend. We struggled in a number of areas and it simply did not run what it is capable of,” Gallen said. “But we were able to rally around my car chief John Benigni and get the win for him. John lost his father on Friday night and he wanted to stay here and see it out. I wanted to send him home on a plane, but he wanted to stay. That is really something and I dedicate this trophy to him and his family.”

Gallen got the best of a stout field on Sunday, a field that included Sanders, Shawn Bowen and Mike McIntire Jr., who collected an Ironman of his own on Sunday. McIntire won the rain-delayed race from Pittsburgh earlier this year and, in the process, finished second in the Funny Car standings behind Jason Rupert, who clinched the championship earlier this year.

By far the most exciting battle of the weekend in the Nitro Jam Drag Racing Series took place in Nitro Harley, with four riders entering the event within reach of the championship. After a grueling weekend, Jay Turner Racing teammates Jay Turner, Randal Andras and Mike Scott were the only ones left standing and Turner’s victory over Andras in the final secured the championship for Scott, his first.

IHRA Summit World Finals Pro Stock winner Brad Waddle

Adding to the drama, Andras blew a motor in the semifinals, but all three riders pitched in to help him make the call. In the end Andras held his own fate in his hands, but he couldn’t get around Turner who ran a 6.295 at 220.48 mph, sealing the championship for Scott. Andras ran a 6.351 at 223.47 to finish second in the race and in the championship standings.

“Jay (Turner) is simply the best. I am here because Jay helped me get here. They gave me a bike that won races all year long and even though I didn’t ride well today, Jay helped get it back for me,” Scott said. “In that final we talked about it and Jay could have gone out and made that run a bye for himself. But we are a team and we win as a team and lose as a team. In the end, we all pitched in to help (Randal) make that final.”

Finally in Pro Stock, Cary Goforth did the unthinkable by winning two championships in one weekend with the IHRA and PDRA racing series. Goforth made the start Friday in Richmond, Va. with the PDRA, clinching the championship with that organization, before boarding a plane and maing the trip back to Memphis, Tenn. for the IHRA World Finals. When Goforth secured his spot in the field in Memphis, Goforth officially clinched his second Pro Stock championship of the weekend and fifth overall title in the class.

2014 IHRA Stock World Champion Jimmie Hutto

“Crazy is a good description for this weekend. It was certainly not the most ideal of situations, but we knew this is something we had to do,” Goforth said. “We knew when we took on this ambitious schedule that this was a possibility, but luckily I have a dad who is just as crazy as any 20-year-old trying to do this. He likes to think outside of the box and I am appreciative of that. Everything he has done for us has been a blessing.”

Despite the ultimate outcome of the weekend, Goforth ended up going out in the first round, setting the stage for a final between Brad Waddle and Kevin Bealko. Bealko left early on the tree, handing Waddle his second win of the season. But it was Goforth’s amazing ride that captured headlines on Sunday.

“I don’t know if something like this is ever going to happen again, so we are really going to embrace this,” Goforth added. “What really hit me was winning five championships, that is really something special. There are not a lot of people who can say that. That is the big time and that is really what hits home for me.”

All 10 classes will be featured in-depth on www.ihra.com over the coming weeks.

Sunday officially concluded the 2014 IHRA racing season. Check back with www.ihra.com for additional stories and features on the 2014 collection of IHRA champions and CLICK HERE for a gallery of Sunday's big winners!

IHRA Super Stock World Champion Scotty Stillings

FINAL ELIMINATIONS

Millington, Tenn.. - Final results from the 2014 IHRA Summit Racing Equipment World Finals at Memphis International Raceway